True Love
by dracoxhermione322
Summary: It was what you read about in newspapers. Teenage romance. Girl gets pregnant. The couple break up. The girl raises their child. But this story happened in Hogwarts, and it is continuing in the Wizarding world. HermionexDraco.
1. Prologue

Sorry I haven't posted anything in a long time but I've been so busy! I want to start a new one and here is the prologue but I'm still not really sure how I'm going to continue. Please PM me for ideas! (:

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**True Love**

typicalgurl1

Ginny Weasley tapped her foot against the ground impatiently. She was distracted and irritated, with reason. For Merlin's sake, isn't he supposed to be punctual? He usually was. And it was just her luck that the Muggle Square was at its busiest time of the day, and people were bustling about, shouting out things at the top of their lungs and running along. Additionally, it was bright daylight and it was hot as hell.

Her frustration dissipated when she glanced at the young boy standing at her side. He was fascinated by the amount of people in the area and was watching them with awe. He ran his hands through his hair absent-mindedly, reminding her of someone she did not want to remember. He tugged on her leg – as he only met her up at her thighs, and she smiled at him. He then shone his brown eyes at her with a questioning look.

"He'll be here soon," said she as she glanced at her watch doubtfully. The boy nodded slowly and continued demonstrating his awe. As she watched him closely, she saw him lift his hand up to point at someone in the crowd. She looked up and saw him.

He looked pretty much the same as last time she saw him. Same blonde hair, same grey eyes, same hidden look. Then again, she met up with him every few weeks. Yet the only thing that had changed over all these years would be his way of dressing. He now bore a pair of Muggle jeans and some dark navy polo shirt. There was a time where he was not so well informed about Muggle attire.

He rushed over to the pair and picked the boy up with one movement, swinging him up into the air. "Good lord, Jamie, you've grown again!" He placed him down onto the ground, back on his feet and the child grinned. "How old are you now? Two? Two and a half?" The man teased, using his hand to ruffle the boy's hair.

"I'm five!" The boy replied indignantly, crossing his arms over his chest but a smile lay on his lips. "You should remember that, Daddy!" Ginny grimaced at the word the boy called the man. Jamie was so loving that although he did not meet up with his father regularly, he still called him 'Daddy'. A name that this man did not deserve.

The man saw Ginny grimace and met her slightly hostile eyes. She struggled out a smile then reached out to give him a friendly hug. As his ear passed her mouth she said quietly: "You're late." He whispered back into her's: "You just had to choose a Muggle place." She took a step back and looked at him.

"You agreed." He nodded, as it was true. He did agree to come here to meet. But he did not expect it to be so hard to find, nor did he understand why she chose this place anyway. They had nothing to hide.

"What are we going to do, Daddy?" Jamie smiled up expectantly at his father, wanting to know the plans for the weekend. It was their ritual, his father told him. Every two months they would meet up for a weekend and go on their special trips. His father always brought him to the most amazing places.

"You'll have to see, Jamie," his father told him mysteriously and he picked up the small duffel bag that lay on the ground next to Ginny. It had stickers stuck all over it and was obviously Jamie's.

"Ginny," he nodded his farewell. "See you on Monday," he confirmed with Ginny. The boy waved at Ginny and then his father placed his hand on the boy's shoulder so that they could leave.

Ginny stared at the figures that disappeared into the crowd. Father and son. Alike in so many ways and different in so many others.

"Goodbye Draco," she muttered.

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Hope you enjoyed it, please review - it will really make my day!


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Jamie belongs to me, everyone else belongs to JK Rowling (:

A/N: I am so sorry for not updating for a long time! I've been so busy but now I have finally finished my final exams for this year (: So now, I'm chilling lol. Hope you like this chapter! Hermione is mentioned here.

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**True Love**

typicalgurl1

It's been five long years since Draco Malfoy has seen Hermione Granger. He sometimes saw her in the Daily Prophet, whenever she won another award or attended some famous event. Other times he might hear her name being spoken about on the streets, followed by her grand achievements – both the recent ones and the ones of back during the War. But it had been a long time since he saw her face-to-face.

There was a time he nearly met up with her in Diagon Alley. The Wizarding World was not as big as people assumed. He could not simply run along undetected for a long time. And yet, the moment he saw her bushy, brown hair, he turned the opposite direction and practically ran. Brave much?

It's not that he didn't want to see her. It's just that if he did, he felt that he might have had a breakdown of some sort. All the memories from school would come flooding back to him and Draco wasn't as strong as he used to be. He might not be able to take it.

Ginny he saw more regularly. She was always the one that passed Jamie along to him, every two months or so. And every single time, she would look angry or possibly furious at Draco. But why? How was it Draco's fault? She had no right to judge him, although she would be just one of the many who did.

It was part of their agreement – the every two months weekend trip. Draco understood a Mother's need to live with her child and he respected that. He knew he also did not have the time nor the ability to raise a kid. He certainly didn't learn any tips from his parents. He loved Jamie and wanted to give him the best – even if that meant not living with his father.

"Daddy," his son's voice took him away from his thoughts. "Daddy, when did you get a car?" Jamie was surprised when Draco led him to an SUV, ready to drive him to their destination. More than surprised, shocked even.

"Just a couple of weeks ago," Draco replied, keeping his eyes on the road. The boy tilted his head to the side with a curious expression. When Draco asked him what the matter was, he laughed.

"It's just, Aunt Ginny says you don't like Muggle things that much. But you're wearing Muggle clothes and driving a car!" He laughed again, shaking his head at his father in a humorous manner. "Why did you change?"

"Sometimes change is good," his father told him, thinking back to his days at Hogwarts.

"_How could you, Hermione?" Harry asked her angrily. He's our enemy, he works for Voldemort!" His disgust was clearly shown on his face. He was disgusted at her; his own best friend was with Malfoy. _

"_Not to mention he's a bloody git!" Ron added, the ends of his ears reddening once again with anger. _

"_He's changed, he really has!" Hermione cried out, trying to get her friends to understand, trying to get them to listen to what she said. But they ignored her response and protested. She ran out of the room and ran to the Prefect's bathroom where Draco was standing; waiting._

_She went straight into his arms and cried. "You have changed," she rationalized - whether to herself or to both of them, "you have, you have. Right?" She wanted to be reassured that what she was doing was not a mistake. He stroked her hair comfortingly, took a deep breath and promised. _

"_Yes, I have changed." _

"I guess change is good sometimes too. Mummy makes me change my clothes when they are dirty, even when I don't want to. She tells me if I don't I'll be dirty and smell," he scrunched up his face. "So I listen to her in the end."

Draco nodded. He had gotten used to Jamie mentioning her when he visited. To make it hurt less, Draco made a distinction between her and "mummy." She was the one who broke his heart. Mummy was the woman who Jamie simply talked endlessly about. The woman who made this little boy's world all worth it.

Draco checked the review mirror and noticed something. "Where'd you get that new watch?" It looked brand new and was from some expensive Muggle brand. He expected Jamie to reply 'Mummy' or even 'Grandma' but he was wrong.

"Uncle Kyle," he beamed at his new toy, fingering it delicately. He didn't really know how to work it but it made him look older and cooler. He looked like a grown-up.

Draco bit his lip back, "Who's Uncle Kyle?" He knew that she would eventually move on and fall in love once again, but he had been dreading it all these years. Yet, every day he would check the tabloids to make sure she isn't spotted with some guy at some pub.

"Uncle Kyle's Mummy's friend." Draco's intake of breath was quick and sharp. It must be it. She must have started dating again. It was bound to happen.

Merlin, it had been five years. Surely he should get over it too, seeing she has. He should begin seeing someone else, someone new, someone who wouldn't look down upon him like many do. Someone who would look past the 'ex-deatheater' mask and see him for who he truly was.

But maybe he didn't want that. The last time he let someone in it didn't go so well.

"Daddy, watch it!" The boy cried out and Draco quickly swerved an animal that was stumbling along the road. He managed to control the car and continue driving in a slow pace.

"Are you okay?" He placed his hand on his son's shoulders, eying the boy carefully. Jamie nodded carefully and Draco gave out a sigh of relief.

Draco had certainly changed for the better over the years. 5 years ago and he would never have thought he would be responsible over a child – let alone father one! Or at least, he would never have thought he would have been able to handle it.

"It's okay," Jamie said to his Father as they continued down the road, clearly more intelligent than Draco had assumed. "Kyle is nice but you are still my Daddy."

Draco let a smile fall onto his face.

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A/N: What did you think? Please review! Give me some more motivation to get chapters up faster...(:


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Jamie belongs to me, everyone else belongs to JK Rowling (:

A/N: Woah. I uploaded another chapter! :D I'm really sorry if the writing style keeps changing. I'm a weird person like that. :P You see Hermione in this chapter! Hope you like it!

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**True Love**

typicalgurl1

"Hermione!" A familiar voice called out, knocking the door impatiently. The noise was irritating, and the person behind the door would be even more irritating if she was let into the apartment. Therefore the brown-haired witch kept silent, and continued on with her work. She dipped her quill into the inkwell once again, writing down the ideas that were springing into her head. This legal document had so many mistakes that needed to be corrected. She frowned, clearly disappointed in her colleagues' work. Surely they knew that what they claimed completely contradicted the 45th Amendment of the Constitution of Magic!

"Hermione!" Came the knocks again, possibly more irritating than the first time round. This might have been because the voice now held a certain frustration in it. As if the person was angry or such. "Okay, I know you hate it when I do this, but – ". There was a whisper and then the door unlocked with a click.

Ginny Weasley stalked in, and saw Hermione on the floor of her living room; parchment surrounding her, a quill in her hand, another quill in her hair – which was by the way, in a messy bun that looked as if all the bushy hair was squeezed into the hair tie. "Hi," Ginny said breathlessly and plopped herself onto a sofa. "Now can you tell me why in Merlin's pants you did not answer the door?"

"Busy, can't you see?" Hermione muttered, her eyes still glued to her piece of parchment. "And I told you not to use alohomora on any of my locks. Remember, I find it rather rude to unlock people's doors like that." Ginny made a face and ran her hands through her straight hair. "Did you get Jamie there alright?"

"Jamie where?" Ginny asked, pretending to be absent-mindedly checking her nails.

Hermione stood up suddenly, letting the parchment fly all over the place. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'JAMIE WHERE?'" She panicked, her eyes sprinting from left to right. "Did you forget about him?" She gasped, imagining the worst. "WHAT SORT OF GOD-MOTHER ARE YOU?" Her eyes grew wide with anger and she stormed to the sofa to tower over Ginny.

"Jamie? As in Jamie Jamie? Our Jamie? Oh, yeah, I got him to you-know-who." Hermione let out a sigh of relief and slid down onto the couch next to Ginny – mumbling quietly about deceiving red heads and how they should all be beheaded.

"Don't call him you-know-who," she reprimanded Ginny with a stern look. "It makes me think of Voldemort." Her eyes grew dark in remembrance of those days during the war.

"Because you totally slept with Voldemort." Hermione whacked Ginny with a pillow, making her cry out and curse in a way that her Mother wouldn't appreciate. Ginny truly deserved that.

"Bloody hell, Hermione! I called him you-know-who because you don't like it when I call him by his real name." She rubbed her shoulder delicately, shaking her head at her impossible friend.

"Why would I not like it?" Asked Hermione challenging, taking herself off the sofa and back to her pile of work.

"Draco," Ginny said and Hermione stiffened noticeably. "See, you don't like it. Which is why I don't say it," she reasoned, giving her friend raised eyebrows and an amused face.

"Frankly, I don't care if you say his name or not," Hermione stated offhandedly.

"Yeah, yeah," Ginny dismissed, clearly not convinced. "He was late by the way. Probably got lost in that Muggle place." Hermione turned around, hiding her face, hiding her sad smile. Poor Draco, he really had reverted to his old ways. When he hated Muggles and all things to do with them.

"What place did you meet up at?"

"Oh, you know, that town next to London where we used to always have the best fish and chips? The one you brought me to when we were younger?" Hermione froze for a moment and then placed herself back onto the floor, pretending to not be bothered.

However, she was bothered. She knew exactly which place Ginny spoke of. And this meant Draco did not in fact revert back to his old ways.

_"The world's best fish and chips are here," she reasoned, sending Draco a huge grin as she tug him along. He was being ridiculous again, pretending he wasn't the tiniest bit curious of what she had to show him in this Muggle village._

_"What are fish and chips again?" She laughed at his question, having explained the term to him many times. The sun was slowly setting and she wanted to get there before dark._

_"I'm not going to bother telling you once again, you're just going to have to try it yourself." She pushed Draco's chest playfully and he pouted, as if he were a little toddler not getting what he wanted._

_"Here," she had given him some, once she bought it from the man. He held the food delicately in his hands, like he was afraid of it or something. "Barbaric," he claimed, sending her an astonished look. "It's covered up with paper!" She laughed at him again, telling him to stop complaining and just eat it._

_He took a bite of the fish, glowering at her as he did so. Then slowly, his expression changed significantly. "Merlin," he breathed. "This is some good stuff." He whistled softly once he swallowed his bite. "Amazing."_

_He gobbled the rest down quickly as Hermione stared at him in awe. After awhile, she let out a soft snicker. "Let's get some more!" He cried out when he finished, placing one hand on the small of her back and pushing her towards the vendor._

Hermione smiled to herself. She did not think he was simply late meeting up with Ginny and Jamie, or even lost in the Muggle Square. Hermione would bet a whole lot of galleons that he was at that vendor again, eating the same fish and chips. The ones she bragged about at Hogwarts, the ones she introduced him to all those years ago. And maybe he was back there remembering that time they had spent together, maybe he – like her – was looking back at their old life and reminiscing. She shook her head at her daydream.

No, that was highly unlikely.

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A/N: What did you think? Please review! Give me some more motivation to get chapters up faster...(:

And if you have any ideas of where this can go, please feel free to say!


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Jamie belongs to me, everyone else belongs to JK Rowling (:

A/N: Sorry, I've already written the next few chapters. This one and the next one are both a little slow - sorry about that. BTW, I just finished watching all of the OC! Such an amazing show (:

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**True Love**

typicalgurl1

"Daddy, daddy, I love this!" Yelled out Jamie as he splashed into the water from the water slide for the fifth time. Draco had brought his son to the new water park that had recently opened in the US. Once they had reached his home, they changed into their bathing suits and apparated (with Jamie coming through side-along apparition) to the borders of the Muggle park. Jamie had been so excited when he saw the rides and was extremely happy when he saw that they didn't need to line up for a long time – and that, of course, had nothing to do with Draco being able to master the confundo charm.

Draco laughed out loud, sending his son a grin and pulling him out of the water. He ruffled the boy's wet hair and together they walked out of the pool hand in hand.

"And Jeffrey asked me where my Daddy is, and I told him that I see him every few months. Then they all laughed at me. But I don't care so much, because their Daddies don't bring them to cool places like you do," the blonde haired boy retold his story, licking his chocolate ice-cream cone as he did so. "And I can bet that you are a more fun Daddy than all the other ones." Draco watched his son talk animatedly with sad eyes.

There were times where he wished his son could have a real family – with everyone living in the same house, with the parents still together. Nonetheless, he knew that this was a pipe dream. Hermione and him would never get back together. They would never become the couple that they used to be.

"But school is fun, we get to play with all the cool toys. I made lots of friends and we're learning how to read – but I already know how to. Mummy also says I can't do those magic tricks that I do at home, she says that I'm special because I can do them but other people won't understand. You can do magic too, right? She told me about Hogwarts, where you, Mummy, Auntie Ginny…well, where everyone went. Were you and Mummy friends at Hogwarts?" Draco looked to the ground, wondering how to answer this question. But then he didn't have to reply at all because his son continued on to answer the question himself. "I guess you were. I saw some pictures of you and Mummy when you guys were younger – they are in Mummy's room. She puts them inside a drawer next to her bed. Why does she do that? Once she caught me looking at one of them and then she got all sad." Draco's ears perked up and he suddenly felt the need to hear more.

Then shaking his head at himself, he stood up. He did not want to keep wondering if Hermione was thinking of him too. He did not want to keep hoping for a miracle to happen. There is no such thing as miracles. "Let's go for another ride," said he as he pulled his son off the bench.

"Okay, oh and Uncle Kyle, I don't think he likes you very much." Draco stopped mid-walk and froze in his current position. He would have thought that he looked almost comical, with the situation aside.

"How do you know that?" He turned to watch his son with apprehensive eyes, eyebrows raised.

"He and Mummy were talking and I heard your name and Uncle Kyle got angry." He looked at his tall Father. "Maybe its because he likes the Chuddley Cannons and you don't?" He sighed dejectedly, remembering the time when they went to watch a quidditch game and Draco had been cross that the Chuddley Cannons had won for the first time ever.

"I – " started Draco but was interrupted by a lady who had stopped right next to the pair.

"Excuse me, is this yours?" She had blonde hair pulled up into a ponytail, a simple t-shirt, and jeans. Her face held a friendly smile and in her hands was a little stuffed dog.

"Greg!" Jamie cried out, grabbing the dog from the lady and hugging it to his chest. "I'm so sorry I forgot about you," he apologized to the dog, stroking its scruffy head.

Draco turned towards the woman, "thank you, he wouldn't have been able to sleep without it," he smiled appreciatively, thinking about the time when they had almost lost Greg at Diagon Alley – causing much distress to the younger male.

"No problem," she said in her American accent. "Greg. That's a nice name for a dog," she rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

"Really? Most people make fun of me because I named him that," Jamie replied, shrugging his shoulders, his eyes lingering on something far away. His friends were strange sometimes. Greg, after all, was a perfectly good name for a dog.

"Well, I think it's a good name." Jamie then asked the woman for her name, to which she replied 'Jenny.' He went and unabashedly told her that her name was pretty nice too.

"I'm Jamie," he said, sticking out his hand to introduce himself. She grasped his small hand, shook it and laughed.

"What a gentleman, Jamie." Draco quickly introduced himself as well and soon found out that the three of them were planning to go on the same ride. They walked together as Jamie told Jenny about himself.

"And so, we apparated here just this morning and we've been having so much fun." Draco stopped daydreaming, snapped back to reality and looked at his son in growing astonishment.

"Jamie, don't tell stories." He couldn't help but scowl at his son, crossing his arms across his chest and stealing a glance at Jenny's expression. He hoped to God she just assumed that Jamie was a little boy who made up words like 'apparate'. If not, then he would have to get his wand out again and exercise his amazing obliviate spell.

To his surprise, she was looking at Jamie with her mouth slightly open. Then, it grew into a wide smile, lighting up her whole face.

"Are you a wizard, Jamie?" Her smile had no hint of playfulness, sarcasm or teasing. She was genuinely happy about something. And thus, Draco intercepted the conversation.

"Jenny, which school did you go to?" It was yes, a random question. But one with an answer that would reveal something.

"Salem's Institute for Witches and Wizards," she answered with a giggle, clearly glad that she had met the two boys today. "I'm guessing you went to Hogwarts, given your accent and all?" Draco nodded, amused that he had finally met someone who went to the American magic school.

Then he remembered the last time someone spoke of that school to him.

_"Let's run away," Draco said, with a wild fire burning in his eyes. "Let's get away from it all. The war. The people. The Dark Lord. Everything." He placed his hands on Hermione's cheeks, making her look him in the eyes. "We'll be free. Free from it all." This escape seemed so easy, so simple. Why didn't he think of it sooner?_

_"I'm not a coward, Draco." Hermione tried to look away from him, to hide her feelings. She did not want to run away. She was a Gryffindor, ready to fight for what she believed in._

_"Are you saying I'm a coward?" The atmosphere around changed completely. He had let go of her cheeks and was now staring at her with hurt. _

_"No, but Draco, we shouldn't run away from our problems. We should face them. Just because things aren't going well, we can't run away!" She put her hand on his shoulder, trying to get him to understand._

_"Just because things aren't going well? Hermione, we could die!" He shook with frustration. Why didn't she get it?_

_"Where would we go?"_

_"I don't know! America?" He spluttered out, saying the first thing that had come to his mind._

_"There are witches and wizards there too," Hermione told him. "And I'm sure there are supporters of Voldemort there. Remember, Salem's Institute for Witches and Wizards? They might have people who are connected to Death-Eaters…" Her words slowly grew softer, with her wondering what to say. She shook her head at him, with her eyes swelling up. "We just can't leave, Draco!" She exclaimed. _

"It's our turn!" Jamie called out, bringing his Father back onto earth. Draco closed his eyes tightly for a moment, trying to come back around. He then opened them, clasped his son's hand, and got ready to face the water slide.

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A/N: What did you think? Please review! Give me some more motivation to get chapters up faster...(:

And if you have any ideas of where this can go, please feel free to say! Give me some ideas! haha


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Jamie belongs to me, everyone else belongs to JK Rowling (:

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I procrastinate too much, I know. It's a disease ;) I hope you like this chapter!

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**True Love**

typicalgurl1

Hermione regarded the place with a look of utmost incredulity. She had no idea why she was here. She took a deep breath and then sighed. It had been a long time since she has been at a place like this. Ever since she had Jamie, she's been prim and proper – the perfect Mother. Then again, some would argue that she was always like this, ever since she was born. Born a thirty-year old woman, some would say.

Those who said that didn't know her well enough.

She bit down her bottom lip, not sure of how she would enter the place. Hell, she didn't want to enter it at all. What _was_ she doing here?

The answer fell upon a certain someone's shoulders. This someone had the name of Ginny Weasley. "What in the world are we doing here, Ginny?" Hermione scoffed at her friend, who was gazing at her with a certain sense of coolness.

"Because you have not had fun for a long time."

"I have fun with Jamie all the time!" She remonstrated, obviously peeved with what Ginny had claimed.

"Yeah sure, but I mean fun fun. Which is why I told you to dress up. Because we're going clubbing. And we're going to have fun, you hear?" She grabbed Hermione's hand and dragged her along into the bar. What a fine entrance, thought Hermione.

"And by the way, I think this dress I bought you fits perfectly." Hermione frowned, upset with Ginny's compliment. The dress was too sexy for a Mother to wear, in her opinion. It was short and black, but of course, dangerously beautiful. Something that she shouldn't wear into the 2-year-old bar at Diagon Alley. Something other people shouldn't see Hermione Granger in.

"Harry, Ron," she heard Ginny stammer. Hermione's cheeks turned the faintest pink when she heard their names. It has been at least 4 months since Hermione had seen them. Although they had forgiven her for her 'Draco debacle' all those years ago, they had never completely forgotten it, especially Ron. The two were on friendly terms with her, but they never became the friends that they used to be. Some scars never fully healed.

Hermione turned around and saw the two boys sitting at a nearby table, eying the two ladies with a half solemn, half curious expression. They never understood why Ginny was so forgiving – and so accepting – of what had happened between Hermione and Draco. The 'Draco-Incident' she liked to call it.

"Hi Ginny," Harry blushed slightly, "Hi Hermione." Harry was always the more sensitive one and tried sometimes to reconnect with Hermione. Nonetheless, now that they rarely saw each other, it was hard. Ginny, on the other hand, was a different matter. After they had broken it off at Hogwarts, they never got back together, despite Harry's obvious feelings for her. Ginny had instead, without Harry, grown into an even more independent witch.

"Harry," Hermione nodded at the raven-haired wizard. "Ron," she nodded in greeting again. Some would go as far as to say that Ron was still a bit stung by what had happened at Hogwarts – when Hermione had told him about Draco. Some would go even farther and say that he was still in love with her – but letting his anger blind him into staying away from her as much as he could. Men had such big egos.

"What are you guys doing here?" Ron asked, looking more at Hermione skeptically than Ginny – something that Hermione had most definitely noticed.

"Why Ronald? Is it so hard to believe that I can have fun every now and then?" Hermione's anger flared up, even though she had no idea why she was getting angry at something so small – and probably nothing.

"No. I didn't mean that." He replied coldly, and Harry shot him a look.

Ginny saw the tension practically tangible in the air and immediately tried to stop anything from happening. "Well, not that this isn't just so fun, but Hermione and I need to get to the bar. See you, boys." The two girls then walked off, getting to the opposite side of the room where they could not see nor hear Harry and Ron anymore.

"Ron irritates me so much! We used to be such good friends, but just because I started dating Draco, he blocked me out of both him and Harry's lives! And now I'm not with Draco anymore but he still doesn't want anything to do with me and he's always assuming the worst of me," Hermione cried out, getting immensely emotional. Ginny patted her back comfortingly.

For goodness sake. This woman was supposed to be a role model for all young witches of today.

"I know this is mean to say, but get a grip of yourself, Hermione. Forget about Ron, he can be such an ass. Forget about Draco, I know you still think about him everyday, but don't." She passed her a glass of alcohol she had just ordered. "And drink up." Hermione stared at the glass meekly.

"I can't. I came here just to dance. The last time I drank at a bar I got seriously hung over the next day." She cringed, remembering that time with Draco. They used to have such fun together…

"It's okay, I've got hunger over potion at home. Don't worry, I just want you to enjoy yourself." Ginny smiled at her friend. It was time that she started to loosen up a bit. "Now drink up."

Hermione smiled weakly, and lifted the glass to Ginny. "To you. That you may find love in a better place than I did."

It was 3 hours later when both women were impossibly drunk. Hermione had never been like this, well, ever. Her anger at Ron, her worry for Jamie, her – as hard as it was to admit – love for Draco had all disappeared from her head. She felt nothing. She felt everything. She felt _free_.

"I feel bloody good," Hermione giggled, nudging Ginny at her side. "Why do I always care about every _bloody_ thing? Did you know that I can never fall asleep? Did you know that I cry in bed nearly every night?" Ginny looked at Hermione with a tint of sadness. She held her liquor better.

"Why?" Came her one question.

"Because of everything. Jamie. Draco. Ron. Harry. Everyone's on my mind at once. Makes me want to explode!" She gulped down another glass of whatever she was having. "I still love Draco," she blurted out, quickly wrapping her hands around her mouth. "Oops, wasn't supposed to say." She let out a huge laugh, and then slumped over the counter top.

Ginny glanced around and was thankful for the crowd – for no one had heard her. "Why don't you tell him?" She was such a serious drunk.

"We made an agreement. We knew this was for the best." She hiccupped and grinned at Ginny. "But oh well. I mean, I don't feel anything now!" She did a little jiggle on her seat. "Let me go do something. Dare me to do something. I want to do something!" Her eyes widened with excitement. "Come on, Ginny, think!"

Ginny stared at her, and let her eyes drop to the ground. "I'm sorry." Hermione asked for what. "It's my fault that you and Draco aren't together. Merlin, it's everyone's fault. If we didn't make your guys lives so fucking hard maybe you two would still be together. Maybe you would be happy."

"Aw Ginny," Hermione wrapped an arm around her neck. "I am happy. I have Jamie baby in my life." She laughed loudly again – loud enough to be considered obnoxiously loud. "You won't give me something to do, so I'm going to dare myself." She got off the stool and walked away.

"Hermione, come back!" Ginny called out for her friend. It wasn't safe to go around by yourself drunk. But Ginny herself was too drunk to get up and follow her friend. Instead, she put her hands in front of her face and hunched over the counter top, so full of remorse.

"La-di-daa," Hermione sung quietly to herself as she crossed the dance-floor. She felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned to face the person behind her.

"Hi, Hermione Granger." The guy half-smiled at the drunk girl. "I'm Damon Kingston from the Daily Prophet. I've heard a lot about you, Ms. Granger." Hermione beamed at the man who was flattering her.

"So sweet. You're such a sweet man." She laughed as she gently patted him on his shoulder. He laughed along with her. Wasn't he so nice?

The music beat pumped loudly in the background, nearly popping her eardrums. "Would you like to go somewhere to talk?" He asked, and she obliged. Anything to get out of this loud room. They walked over to a private room at the back and he started to ask her a lot of questions. Questions about the war, about her career, about her love life. He was making her head _hurt_.

"No please, no more questions." She told him, covering her ears with her palms. When he stopped talking she removed her hands and watched him. He had brown hair that had the swept look going for him, covering parts of his eyes. He had a thick jaw-set and broad, strong shoulders. "Your, your hair…" She brushed his hair out of his eyes and then paused.

It was quiet.

So she kissed him.

_"I love you," Draco whispered, kissing up her neck. "I love you so much." She ran her hands through his hair and pulled him closer. _

_"I love you too, Draco." She wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her lips glued to his. It was like they were on fire. He pulled her up and she wrapped her legs around his torso. He pushed her against the wall. Her hands moved to under his shirt, going up and down his chest and stomach. He moaned into her mouth. _

_"Hermione Granger, I will never leave you." _

It was as if she had just been slapped, as if the wind knocked her over. She pushed Damon, or whatever his name was, away from her. She blinked wildly. _Draco?_ She called for him in her mind.

Then everything came back to her. The alcohol did not take away the pain, it just muted it. And now it was all tumbling back.

She remembered his eyes, his face, his lips.

"I'm sorry," she whispered – to herself, to Draco, to Damon – and then ran out of the room.

* * *

A/N: Please review and give me more motivation to get the chapters up quicker!

And if you have any ideas of where this can go, please feel free to say! Give me some more ideas! :)


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I wouldn't be writing on , would I? JK Rowling owns all but Jamie (:

A/N: Hope you like the chapter! Thanks for the reviews.

* * *

**True Love**

typicalgurl1

"Go to sleep, Jamie." Jamie giggled with glee and pushed his father's tickling hands away. He didn't want to go to bed, not now at least!

"I think you had too much sugar today," Draco laughed out loud, pulling Jamie's covers over him. He walked out of the room and shut the door, shaking his head at his incredibly active son. It was amazing how high one could get on cotton candy.

"He's in bed okay?" Jenny asked, placing her glass of water down onto the coffee table. Draco nodded and sat himself down on the opposite couch. "So," Jenny crossed her legs, "the infamous Draco Malfoy. I've heard much of you." She smiled at the blonde and he shrugged back at her.

Over the years he had tried to regain a better reputation than the one his father had left him. He collaborated with Kingsley – the new Minister of Magic – and became an auror for a while. When Harry and Ron became more prominent in that department, he got out of the Ministry and started his own company – selling the newest, best, and most brilliant broomsticks in the Wizarding world. His broomsticks made Potter's old Firebolt look ancient and slow.

"You know, even in America I've heard of you. Never thought that I would meet you at the amusement park here. A pleasant surprise," she stated agreeably. He tried to deter her away from talking about his so called 'fame' and instead told her about his little trips with Jamie. "Hey, you went to school with the Golden Trio, right? Do you know them well?" She asked unexpectedly.

Draco looked down at his lap for a few moments, frozen in thought. He knew one third of the trio well, very well actually.

"How would you like to go for a walk?" She stood up abruptly, clearly feeling the change in mood; but yet still beaming down at him. Some people just felt uncomfortable with some topics. Together they made their way out the door, apparating from his doorstep to Diagon Alley.

"I love Diagon Alley," she said, side-stepping a couple passing them by. "In America the Wizard towns are beautiful, but Diagon Alley gives out a different aura of magic…I dunno, it's just not the same." Jenny giggled to herself, "You probably think I'm silly."

"No, no I don't." He chuckled, and she nudged him on the side jokingly. "I get what you mean. It's amazing here. When I walk through the alleys here I feel like I fit in for once. I never really fit in at Hogwarts, at my childhood home, anywhere. But walking down these alleys make me feel at home. Its like I finally belong." He paused and spun around as he noticed she had stopped walking.

"That's…intriguing. You are really deep." He laughed awkwardly. That was blunt. And surprisingly nice.

"No one's really said that to me in a long time," he laughed again and then they continued to walk down the long street. Many shops were still open and the signs and lights were all very bright. Bubbling witches and wizards were going in and out of said shops, making last minute shopping before the shops closed for the night.

"Draco," a woman's voice said breathlessly, and Draco stopped to stare at the woman that stumbled before him and Jenny. His breath caught and he blinked rapidly several times, as if he couldn't believe his eyes. It was Hermione. And she was impossibly drunk.

The brunette blushed severely and then when she saw that Draco was with another woman, she blushed even more. Turned absolutely bright, tomato red.

"Long time no see," he offered, putting out his hand as Jenny looked at him questionably. What the hell was he doing? Is that what he does, shake her hand after he hasn't seen her for 5 years? Is that how he greets the woman he fell in love with, the woman who gave birth to his son? Is that how he reacts when the love of his life appears in front of him?

Hermione hesitantly reached for his hand and shook it quickly, dropping it right after she did so. "I- I need to go," she avoided looking him straight in the eye and yet he caught her tear stained face. "It was nice seeing you," she mumbled, "we should catch up sometime." She turned to leave, a bit uneasy on her feet.

"Wait," he called out to her and she looked back to gaze at him. Why did he call her back? He couldn't possibly say what he had wanted to say all along, he couldn't say what was on his mind! He was being ridiculous! So instead, he changed his mind and told her reassuringly, "Jamie's having fun."

Hermione nodded, sending him a brief smile and then rushing away in her hurried, yet not entirely lucid walk. Draco let a worried expression fall onto her face – he hoped she would be okay. Having Hermione drunk wasn't always a safe situation to be in. Then he let his worried face fall off and a grin fall back on.

He laughed quietly to himself, forgetting completely about the girl standing next to him. Hermione Granger. Damn. She still looked as beautiful as ever.

_"What are you looking at?" Shot Granger as she glanced at him over her books. He smirked knowingly at her irritated face. It was fun to wind her up. _

_"Come over here, Granger." He ignored her question. She rolled her eyes, her way of saying 'as if' to him. Malfoy was being impossible as ever. Why was he following her around like some stalker? _

_She stood up and put her books away, walking out of the library and to an empty classroom. She knew that Malfoy was right behind her as usual. She heard the door shut. _

_"What is this, Malfoy?" He watched her lean against a desk, wanting to interrogate him._

_"What is what?" He walked over to her and pulled her up gently, planting a kiss on her mouth. "This?" He kissed her again and again. _

_She laughed, "We have to stop sneaking around. I think people are getting suspicious. Listen," she held herself away from him and looked into his eyes. "At the beginning, we were just studying. Then we began to get to know each other and people found it weird that we were always together in the library. Then…this happened and people now wonder why we're never studying together anymore and instead you're stalking me. I think you're really confusing people." She talked a lot, it was one of the reasons why he liked her. _

_"Don't care about what other people think." _

_"What about your Father?" She asked, noticeably worried. _

_"Forget about him," he said. Merlin, she made his heart stop sometimes. The way she looked at him, how much kindness and compassion she could hold. "Has anyone told you you're beautiful?"_

He sighed, he was getting delirious. Seeing Hermione again went better than he had expected of such circumstance. At least he didn't say anything too stupid or insensitive.

"That was a strange encounter," Jenny claimed, snapping him out of his own thoughts. "I recognized her, that's Hermione Granger, right?" She watched the blonde man stare into the distance, evidently caught up in his feelings and emotions.

"Yeah," he said distractedly. "Listen Jenny, today's been really fun. You're great with Jamie." He smiled a small smile, "but I have some stuff on my mind, so maybe we'll see each other some other time?" Jenny raised her eyebrows in surprise but quickly recuperated and reached out to give him a hug.

He was startled and only patted her back gently before she backed away. "You're a good guy, Draco," she said to him. Her statement puzzled him greatly. What did she mean by that?

With a wave, she spun on the spot and disappeared with a pop. He was about to do the same thing when he saw a flash of red hair come out of the nearby bar. The person was slouching as if she was exhausted or down with a flu. Then the woman saw Draco, groaned loudly and walked up to him.

"Don't tell me you bumped into Hermione just now." He smelt the alcohol in her breath and grimaced.

When he nodded, she groaned again. He was wondering how in Merlin's name did both women he rarely saw – both very proper and famous woman – get so drunk.

"Oh hell, I'm in trouble," Ginny sighed. And without a goodbye, she apparated out of Diagon Alley, leaving the oddly bewildered Draco behind.

* * *

A/N: Draco and Hermione meet for the first time! What did you think? Click the review button and please give me some feedback! It will be much appreciated. (:

And if you have any ideas about the fic just inbox me or something.


	7. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and his world belongs to JK Rowling.

A/N: Hope you like the chapter! It's basically a chapter full of memories. And it's the longest chapter I've written so far for this story. Hopefully it'll give some insight of what had happened between Draco and Hermione.

Thanks to the readers who have been reviewing! Special thanks to: edwardsoneandonlylove, Shyrazie, and anangelwithnoname. :)

* * *

**True Love**

typicalgurl1

_Hermione's eyes wandered around the room, trying to think of a way to push what she had just found out away. She couldn't believe it. How could it be? There must have been some mistake. But the facts were the truth. The red glow around her was unmistakable. She let her wand drop to the ground. _

_The spell had been cast and her suspicions were confirmed. She did not know what to think. She did not know whether to be happy, worried, angry…she just drew a blank. What would Draco say? What would he say? How would he react? With joy, she told herself convincingly. The Draco she had grown to love over the two years would not reject this news with anger. He would be happy, for her, for him, for them both. _

_Was she in shock? Was that why her face was now frozen, without emotion?_

_But the truth was – it was undeniable – she was pregnant. _

_"Draco, I need to talk to you." She burst into their common room, pushing him onto the sofa. She stood in front of him and then started pacing from left to right. She nibbled on her lower lip, nervous, scared, not knowing how to express what she felt in words. _

_"Calm down, love. Is this about the speech? I'm writing mine now," he motioned towards the parchment in his hand. As if she would spend worry herself over something so insignificant. "Have you finished your's? Graduation is, after all, next week." Hermione ignored him and continued with her pacing. "Well, I guess it is Hermione Granger we're talking about. Miss Head Girl would have written her speech ages ago. And I'm sure its beautiful," he chuckled under his breath. _

_"Its not about the speech," she asserted, sending him a frustrated look. _

_"What is it about then?" She sighed and continued around. "Granger," he stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders. "What is it?" _

_"Sit down, Draco," she instructed him and when he shook his head, she sat down herself and pulled him along with her. He was worried. She was acting awfully strange. _

_"I'm pregnant." She glanced at him, trying to decipher his hidden emotions. Better to be straightforward and get to the point._

_"Wh-what?" Draco managed to stutter out, clearly confounded. _

_"I'm pregnant," she repeated slowly. "Preggers, with child, knocked up – "_

_"I know what you meant. But, how?" She took his hand in hers and rubbed it gently. _

_"I don't know," she breathed. "We used the contraception spells. Well, I think we did. You cast them most of the time." He nodded solemnly. "Draco, what are you thinking?" She asked helplessly, wanting some sort of response. _

_"I don't know what to think, Hermione. I love you, but I don't know what to think. How long have you known?" He looked at her, his eyes filled with worry and disbelief._

_"Just today. What are we going to do?" She wanted him to take control of the situation, to tell her what to do. She wanted him to give her answers, give her reassurance that everything will be okay. _

_"I need to take a walk," he stood up abruptly and she blinked._

_"We need to talk about this! I feel…so alone right now; you can't even start to understand it. We're still in school, Malfoy, we don't have jobs, we're still figuring out our lives. And we're at the brink of the beginning of a War!" _

_"I know," he replied. She was hurt by his little input in this conversation and stood up with tears in her eyes. _

_"Despite all that, aren't you the slightest bit happy? I don't expect you to be overjoyed by this fact but don't you feel a little, I don't know, proud? That I'm holding your baby?" He watched her with a helpless expression._

_"I just, I just want you to say something. Get angry, get worried, get happy, get whatever. Just tell me how you feel." She whispered and turned to leave._

_Before she could take a step, two arms wrapped themselves around her from the back. "I love you, Hermione. And I know this is going to be hard but it amazes me that there is life in you. I don't want to sound cliché but I think its beautiful there is a chance that there is going to be a little Hermione running around."_

_"Or a little Draco," she whispered. _

_He placed his mouth on her neck. "I guess it's just really confusing for me now. My father had never been much of a dad, and I've never had much of a family. But I want you to know that you'll be okay and I'll do whatever it takes to keep you and the baby safe." _

_He let go of her and spun her around, bringing her body close to his in embrace. They held onto each other for a while and slowly, Draco broke away._

_"Would it be mushy if I told you that even after these two years, you still take my breath away?" He questioned her, and she laughed happily in response._

_"Yes, very." He planted a kiss on her cheek. _

_"Screw that, I'll be mushy then." _

_

* * *

_

_"We're done!" Hermione ran up to Draco, jumping up into his arms. He smiled at her and brought her back to her feet. The crowd was loud; everyone was in their graduation robes, celebrating the end, and the beginning. _

_Ginny came and gave Hermione a hug. "Congratulations!" She shot her a friendly grin and ignored Draco. "Are you coming over to stay with us during the summer?" _

_"I don't think so," Hermione said, giving her an apologetic look. It was best to stay away from Ron as much as possible – and living in his house would not be doing so. _

_Suddenly, Harry appeared by her side. "Hermione, congrats."_

_"You too," she said timidly. She had no idea where she and Harry stood anymore. Whether they were friends, enemies, or simply classmates. She supposed the lines were all blurred now. _

_"Can I have a word with you?" She followed him back to the castle, and a few minutes later, they were in an empty classroom on the second floor. He opened his mouth with determination. _

_"Ron and I are going after Voldemort." She choked on her own spit even though she wasn't talking._

_"What? That's ridiculous, Harry! By yourselves? Are you talking about the Horcruxes? Do you really think you are ready…?" She was beyond shock. Harry had to be joking! He had just finished school, he was definitely not yet ready!_

_"I know of a way to defeat him," he said and then explained his plan. Slowly, Hermione's face calmed slightly in realization. Harry had apparently taken much of his time to think of this plan. It was good._

_"That would work," she nodded, mainly to herself. _

_"Yeah, it would. And I want you to come with us and help." She raised an eyebrow. "Well, we need you to come. We'd be lying to ourselves if we thought that we could do this without you. I wouldn't have been able to survive Hogwarts without you, there is no way I can do this without you." He said to her, looking at her truthfully. The honesty was so obvious in his voice. He truly believed he needed her._

_"Harry…" She started, not knowing how to finish. She couldn't go off with him, off on another adventure! She was pregnant. "I don't think I can."_

_He nodded, as if he were expecting that. "I understand. If you change your mind, Ron and I will be waiting tomorrow at King's Cross. We're telling the Weasleys that we're going on a trip together before finding a job." She brushed his words aside and walked out of the room. How could Harry expect that of her? Then again, he did not know of her state, but did he think that after all these months of coldness and silence they could just pick up from where they left off?_

_As she was walking back to her dormitory, she saw a dark standing at the end of a corridor. It seemed as though that person was waiting expectantly for her. As if he had something to say. And said person was the one and only Lucius Malfoy. "Mr. Malfoy," she greeted stiffly. _

_"Ms. Granger," he smiled, a smile with his mouth and not his eyes. It was cold. "Draco just informed me of your relationship with him." She kept quiet, not knowing how much Draco had told his father. "He says that he's in love with you," he scoffed. "And," he paused, eying her, "he also says you're pregnant." She lifted her hand defiantly. _

_"And if I am?" _

_"That would…prove to be a obstacle in my son's life. I spoke to him about it, but I am not entirely sure that he has been convinced. So, just in case…", he trailed on. He then saw the young woman draw her wand from her pocket. "Now, now, Ms. Granger. I'm not here to fight little Mudbloods." She snarled, and lifted her wand higher. _

_"Expelliarmus!" Her wand flew out of her hand and she inhaled in surprise. Lucius had not lifted his wand, nor had he opened his mouth. She turned around and saw Yaxley behind her. "Accio wand," he laughed, and took hold of her only weapon against them. _

_"My son never loved you. He was simply infatuated by you. He told me that he wanted to break it off with you when school ended. But then you had to bring up the baby. You, filthy girl, had to get pregnant." He spat on the ground, disgusted. "I'm doing everyone a favor. Finitus Enfante." Hermione dropped to the ground and everything went black._

_"Miss Granger? Are you awake?" Madam Pomfrey shook the girl gently. "I think you need to wake soon to pack. You're leaving this afternoon." Hermione groaned and opened her eyes slowly. The lights blurred her vision; nonetheless she recognized the room she was in. She was in the Hospital wing. _

_"How did I get here?" She asked the kind nurse. _

_"You apparently collapsed in one of the hallways yesterday. Mr. Finnigan brought you in yesterday afternoon. I looked you over and you are fine. You just might have a little headache because you fell." She looked at the girl worriedly. "Are you fine though, dear? I think its all the stress and excitement that got to your head. Dehydration, maybe." Hermione nodded and then swallowed. She started to remember what had happened yesterday before she passed out. _

_"I need to go," she said and pranced carefully off the bed. _

_"Be careful!" Madam Pomfrey called out to her as she hurried to an empty room. She found her wand in her pocket and cast the same spell she had cast last week. She waited for the red glow to surround her but there was none. _

_She had lost the baby._

_Sobs got stuck in her throat, tears started to swell in her eyes, and she began to cry into her hands. She felt hollow inside, as if there were nothing in her. She felt empty. She had originally doubted that she wanted the baby but now that it was gone, she felt pain._

_And whom was she kidding? Lucius Malfoy was an idiot but he was right. Draco and her would never have lasted in the outside world. He was to become a Death eater, and she had to…stay in her rightful place, fighting against the dark side alongside Harry Potter. _

_She stood up and made her way to her common room. When she entered, she immediately saw Draco waiting for her, a solemn expression on his face. _

_"Where have you been, Hermione? When you didn't come back last night, I was worried." He ran his fingers through his hair, as if he had many things on his mind. His welcome shocked Hermione. She would have thought that he would have greeted her more warmly._

_"Draco." She looked into his eyes. "We can't do this." He gazed at her, keeping a cold mask on his face._

_"What do you mean?" _

_"Us. We can't be together. Your Father will kill us." She expected Draco to glare, to growl, to argue back. Possibly say "I'll like to see him try," or something of that nature. She did not, however, expect him to reply with: "I agree."_

_"We don't belong together." She said emptily. At this point he and she should be crying, holding onto each other…not staring at one another with blank faces. She felt as though she was going to collapse. _

_"Hermione. You might be wondering why I'm not arguing with you right now. And it's because I agree with you. I can't give you the life you could have." He lifted his sleeve and shook his arm at her. "Look, my dark mark. You've seen it before but have you really understood the significance of it? I've been branded. I'm one of Voldemort's. If you really understand that, you wouldn't be with me. You wouldn't have ever spoken to me." Her head was spinning. What was happening? She thought that Draco would fight back, would try and convince her that they do belong together, that they were meant to be. _

_She thought that Draco valued their relationship more. She thought he loved her. _

_"Don't you see?" He asked, shaking his head at her. "I'm a Death-eater. A Death Eater!" He shouted, wanting her to run away, to scream in fear. "I can't be a Father. I can't be who you want me to be. We –", he struggled out, "were a disaster waiting to happen." Hermione felt tears fall down from her eyes. _

_"Harry asked me to go with him to fight Voldemort. He has a plan."_

_"You can't, not with the baby," he protested, finally allowing emotion other than anger seep into his face._

_"I lost the baby!" She shouted at him, breaking out of her bubble. It sounded ridiculous when the words came out. How could she lose the baby? It wasn't possible. It was logical. It couldn't be true._

_"And yes, you are right. We were never meant to be. We were lying to ourselves the whole time, Malfoy. And now that I don't have the baby anymore, you can leave me alone," she choked on her voice. "We'll be who we're supposed to be." She walked past him and tried to repress her tears. "Goodbye, Draco." Hermione then went into her room and shut the door. _

_When she came out with her trunk, ready to go catch the train, he was gone and all that was left was a letter by the table. _

Dear Hermione,

I'm sorry that I've caused you so much pain. And I'm sorry that we'll never have the life that we hoped for. My father is a Death eater and I am a Death eater. That is my calling. As much as I hate it, I have to go along with it. If we stay together, we would die. The years to come are dark, I can feel it. And I guess bringing a baby into it would be a bad idea. I'm sorry that you lost the baby. It is, however, for the best. I'm too dangerous for you. We're not supposed to be together. I know we're both doing ourselves a favor by ending whatever this was. And to make the situation a little better, I promise that you won't ever hear from me. Have a good life, Hermione.

Draco Malfoy

_After reading the letter she ripped it into shreds and placed what was left into her pocket. She walked to the train station and sat in a compartment in silence. She stared out the window, watching the world pass her by. Hogwarts had been her home for the last 7 years. Draco had been her home. And she was leaving it all behind._

_When she walked out to King's Cross station, she saw Harry and Ron waiting for her. Harry smiled knowingly – he had somehow known she would have come with them in the end. He thought she couldn't resist the challenge. Ron watched her apprehensively, still remembering and never forgetting how she had betrayed them over the years – fraternizing with the enemy._

_Her own face portrayed, well, nothing as she followed them wordlessly out of the station, and followed them into what was known to the world as the Defeat of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named._

* * *

A/N: Please review, it'll be much appreciated (:

Also, I won't update for a bit because I'm going to be travelling for a while. If you have any ideas for this fic, just PM me!


	8. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and his world belongs to JK Rowling.

A/N: I'm so sorry for not updating for a long time! I was on vacation and then when I got back, school started. Life's been pretty busy ;) Anyway, hope you like it!

* * *

**True Love**

typicalgurl1

"Ginny, I am never going out with you again," Hermione groaned, throwing her pillow at her friend that had just walked into her bedroom. She dug her face into the sheets and moaned loudly. To put in bluntly, she felt like shit. "Didn't you torture me enough yesterday?" Ginny picked up the pillow and brought it back to Hermione, sitting herself at the edge of her bed.

"Drink this, it'll get rid of your hang over," she instructed, placing a mug in front of Hermione. Reluctantly, Hermione accepted it and drank it till the mug was empty.

"Merlin, I do feel better."

Ginny looked at her hopefully, but she threw the redhead a dirty look. As if she would ever forgive her. "As in my headache is gone. However," she raised her eyebrows, "I could still die of embarrassment." She sighed and collapsed back onto her bed.

"I'm guessing you bumped into Draco last night?" By the time Ginny had made her way back to Hermione's apartment last night, her friend had already fallen asleep on the bed, all clothes still on, shoes on her feet and tear stains left on her cheeks.

"He was with a girl," Hermione informed her, biting back any insults she wanted to spit out. "She's pretty, young looking, not old and wrinkly like me." Hermione pulled the sheets over her head and groaned again. Why did age have to always catch up with her? Why couldn't she still look like she did 5 years ago?

"You're not old," Ginny shot at her. "You just think you are because you had Jamie so young. You're actually at the prime time of your life! Hell, with your looks you could be picking up guys every night."

"That makes me feel so much better," Hermione replied sarcastically from underneath the covers. "Since I obviously have been with so many guys all these years." Ginny put her hands on the covers and shook Hermione gently.

"I'm just saying you could if you wanted to. And forget about Draco and that girl. She didn't look that pretty anyway. Just a lot of make up," Ginny said reassuringly. However, from what Hermione could remember, the girl was rather pretty, so Ginny must have been just trying to make her feel better. Hey, maybe she'll consider forgiving her.

"I can't get him out of my mind." She threw the covers off of her and stared at Ginny. "I can't stop thinking about him now. He looked…exactly as I had remembered him. Maybe a bit older, more mature, more wise. But he's still the same Draco." She sighed, knowing that what she was thinking was wrong. Terribly, terribly wrong.

"Then why don't you talk to him? Send him an owl or something."

"We ended that relationship a long time ago, Ginny. It's been ages. It wouldn't be right to cut open the wounds." It wouldn't be fair to her, nor to him. It wouldn't be fair to anyone.

"You guys were in love! And in the end, Draco joined the good side anyway, so technically, you two broke up for nothing. And as much as you didn't want to admit, he joined us because of you. He was saving your life."

"Just because he saved my life," she turned away from Ginny and hid her emotions behind a curtain, "doesn't mean that he still loved me. It just meant that he remembered what we used to have. And that was a long time ago."

She bit her lip down hard, "and besides, when we broke up he admitted that he and I were not meant to be. I have to stop fighting the plain truth. That he was correct."

Ginny looked down at her feet solemnly. Her friend was broken. And it was her fault.

_"How could you, Hermione? How could you?" Ginny was outraged, how could Hermione do this to herself again? Didn't she learn from the first time round? _

_"I didn't mean to…It just happened," Hermione whispered quietly, so different in contrast with her friend's tone of voice. Ginny pulled her robes close to her body and crossed her arms around her chest. She was not happy with Hermione at all. _

_"You weren't supposed to go see him. Didn't I tell you that it was a bad idea? You hadn't seen the guy in nearly 3 years, at least, not until the Final Battle, and yet you have the guts to go to his house and talk to him? Did you really think you had enough in you to withstand that?" Hermione let tears fall down her face as her friend scolded her. Ginny never got mad at Hermione. This couldn't have been happening. _

_"I couldn't help it, I still love him, Gin! I do!" _

_"He left you," Ginny replied coldly, "Draco freaking Malfoy left you. Even after he said that he'll always be there. He might have come to our side eventually but because he was a coward. Don't you understand that?" She wanted to shake it into her brunette friend, she really did. She wanted to do anything to keep her friend from hurting herself again. _

_"During the war, I missed him so much. And when I saw him," she tried to justify her actions, "when I saw him at the Final Battle, I knew I had to go see him again after it all ended." Why couldn't her friend understand? Joining the Golden Trio again didn't mean that she forgot her past, what had happened. Draco would always be part of her life. _

_"Yeah, you just had to go see him," Ginny glared bitterly, "you just had to go see him, sleep with him, and then get pregnant again. Why can't you be the real Hermione? The strong one, the one who doesn't give in. Who doesn't let someone use her shamelessly." She stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind her, leaving her crying friend behind._

_It was as if she had been slapped across the face. _

_But surely, surely Ginny could understand why…_

_She had loved him. She still loved him. And that day, that night she went and visited him after all those years of not seeing him…well, it was magical. She knew everything she felt was irrational, that this wasn't meant to be. But yet that night, she finally felt that she was whole again._

"Go," Ginny stood up abruptly, her mind completely made up. "Get up, take a shower and go change into a new set of clothes." Hermione glanced up at her friend, startled.

"What? Why?"

"Because you're going to go out to lunch with Draco Malfoy." 

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A/N: Please review! If you do, I would totally give you a virtual hug (:


	9. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: JK Rowling's. Need I say more?

A/N: MUST READ THIS!

Did I get your attention? Good. Okay, what I wanted to say was that I know I confused some people with the whole 'losing baby' thing, so FINALLY there will be an explanation. This chapter is another chapter set in the PAST. That's why it's in italics :P Hope everything's cleared up now! Enjoy (:

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**True Love**

typicalgurl1

_Hermione had no idea why she was standing there. She felt out of place, as if she didn't belong. Because, well, frankly, she didn't. She looked misplaced standing by her lone self by the gates of Malfoy Manor. But she didn't want to leave either. _

_"What the hell am I doing here?" She muttered under her breath, eyeing the mansion that stood 100 meters in front of her. She had expected it to look cold, to look scary, but she couldn't draw up any fear at all. All that was in her mind was Draco. _

_She had seen him just a few days ago. At the Final Battle. That was the first time she had seen him in so long. When he dashed passed her, aiming a spell at a sprinting death-eater, her heart stopped for a split-second. She had seen his face fly by, and it was just as beautiful as she remembered. After they had won the battle, she saw him shake Kingsley's hand, his face erased of any emotion whatsoever. 'Oh Draco,' she had sighed. She knew he was good. She knew that he would come to their side eventually. But why not earlier?_

_And yet all that anger for him didn't bottle up inside of her. She went off and celebrated with the rest but her heart was not at it. She just couldn't stop thinking about him. And that was what brought her here, standing outside Malfoy Manor, waiting for something to come along and tell her what to do. _

_Suddenly, as if answering her prayers, out came a loud popping noise and she jumped back in shock. A little house-elf had just apparated in front of her, sending her a hopeful look. _

_"Ms. Granger," she squeaked, bowing down low to the ground. "Are you here to see Master?" Hermione tried to hide her surprise but failed. How could the house-elf know who she was?_

_"Why, uhm, yes," she answered hesitantly. "Is Malfoy expecting me?" She furrowed her eyebrows in worry; Malfoy must think that she was some stalking psycho!_

_"Oh, no, Miss. Master is not expecting you. I saw you standing here when I was cleaning the windows," she smiled toothily. "I can bring you in to Master's study though, if Miss lets." _

_"Uhm, okay?" She wanted to slap herself, what she getting herself into? "How do you know who I am though?" Hermione asked the elf curiously. _

_"Master has a picture of you in his study, Miss." The house-elf laughed a high-pitch laugh, "it's a very beautiful picture, Miss! He told me that you are the reason why I get paid now!" She stuffed her hands in front of her little mouth, "I'm sorry, Miss. I just still can't get used to the fact that I get paid. Me, Miss!" She stifled another giggle. Then, with a snap of her fingers, the gate opened. _

_"Come in, Ms. Granger," and Hermione obeyed her, following the little house-elf with a look of awe. The mansion was, unsurprisingly, absolutely immense in size, and the grand foyer alone gave Hermione the chills. It struck her strange that Draco lived in this place all by himself. Her heart sank slightly. After both his parents died, he must have felt very lonely, even if he and his father never got on good terms…_

_"Here, Miss! You will be a very pleasant surprise for Master!" Twixy had led her to a large door that was closed shut. However, when Hermione turned around, Twixy had disappeared. She contemplated whether she should open the door or not. _

_'Am I strong enough?' She asked herself. 'Do I really think after all this time I can just talk to him adult-to-adult?' She told herself yes, she told herself that she had indeed matured over the last 3 years. She reassured herself that she was strong enough to talk to him. _

_And with that, she put her hand on the doorknob and opened the door. _

_"Who's there?" Draco had called out when she entered. She gazed along the galore of books, and realized that Draco had dubbed the library his study. She placed her fingertips across some of the books and blinked rapidly. This collection was to die for! _

_"Who is it?" She heard his voice call out once again and she jumped. Why? She knew he was in here, for Merlin's sake! 'Get a grip on yourself,' she scolded. When she heard footsteps, she cautiously started turning around and realized that this was a huge mistake. _

_Then as if fate was punishing her, she tripped on the carpet and fell to the ground, making a loud thumping noise. Shit._

_"Hermione?" She turned to the voice and saw Draco staring at her, bewildered. And who could blame him? His ex-girlfriend, ex-carrier-of-his-baby, ex-best friend was sprawled across his study floor after not talking to him for practically 3 years!_

_She sprung up, and looked at the ground. "I wanted to talk to you," she forced herself to raise her chin high and look him in the eyes, "but I think that that was a mistake. I think I should go," she sent him what she hoped to be an apologetic look, and was ready to dash out of the study. _

_"Hermione, wait!" She glanced at him. He struggled to form the words he wanted to say._

_"Stay. If you wanted to talk to me, I'm sure that there was a reason why." He smiled at her, and reached out to give her a friendly hug, then stopped when she didn't react. She lifted her hand and he awkwardly shook it._

_"It's great to see you again," he said sincerely, motioning towards his desk on the second floor of the study." _

_"How have you been?" Draco asked her, and she stared at him. She wanted to say so many things, something along the lines of 'missing you', but she couldn't of course. "Life's been okay. The war has ended now, so there's finally some peace in the Wizarding World." He nodded absentmindedly at her answer._

_"I've missed you," he said abruptly. She blinked. Then all her anger started to build up and explode._

_"Don't say that." He looked at her confusedly. "You can't say that," her eyes started to grow dark. "Not after all this time. Not when you said we weren't meant to be." Her breathing deepened. "Not after," she swallowed, "you said that we couldn't be together because you were a death-eater!" She stood up angrily, and threw her hands in the air. _

_"How could you, Draco? Really? We broke up because you said you weren't good for me, that you can't provide for me, that you were a bad guy! I got that, but then, you come over to the good side. Why couldn't we just stay together if you were going to help us anyway?" She shuddered, "what was it then? Was it just the easy way of putting me down? The easy way of telling me you didn't love me anymore?"_

_Draco's face had changed significantly and he now had a sad expression etched upon his features. Hermione brushed her angry, hot tears off her face. She was still bitter. Bitter after all this time. It was pathetic really._

_"Hermione," he stood up in front of her. "It was what I thought was for the best at that time." He bit his lip down. "And if you remember clearly, you were the one who first said we didn't belong together. You were the first one who gave up on us." She remembered back to the day, how she felt, what she wanted him to do._

_"Because I wanted you to fight back!" She argued with him. "I wanted you to fight for us, fight for what we had, who we were together! I wanted you to tell me that despite everything, you'll still be there for me no matter what. But no," she blinked back her tears, "you just stood there and let me win. You started to agree with everything I said."_

_"How was I supposed to know you wanted me to defend us?" He yelled frustratingly. _

_"You're just supposed to!" She finally let the dam collapse and tried to hide the sob in her throat. "Did you know that your father is the reason why we lost the baby? After that had happened I just wanted you to reassure me that everything would be alright. And you didn't, you just agreed with all my doubts…that we weren't supposed to be together, that we wouldn't last, that you didn't really love me." _

_She laughed a bit hysterically, "Draco, I loved you so much. It broke my heart to leave you. I loved you with all my heart." Unexpectedly, two strong arms wrapped themselves around her in an embrace. _

_"Hermione Granger, I broke us up because I thought that it would be saving you. That you could finally be safe. Even if that meant being without me. I loved you more than life itself." He whispered into her ear, making her knees go weak. "Hell, I still love you now." _

_"Don't say that," she whispered back weakly. "Don't lie to me."_

_"It's the truth," he said. She couldn't help herself; she lifted her head up and kissed him with all the passion that she's dug deep inside of her for those 3 years. _

_And it felt right. _

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_She picked her clothing up off the ground, crying silently as she did so. She was putting most of them on in a hurry and trying to get her shoes on also at the same time._

_"Hermione?" Draco groaned from the bed. She ignored him and tried to get her buttons done up. "Hermione?" He called out, this time more awake, less disoriented. He sat up and focused on her, getting very worried. "What's wrong?" _

_She scrambled around to find her bag and her wand, wanting to get out of this place as fast as she could._

_"Hermione, are you crying?" She ignored him again and finally found her wand, putting it inside of her pocket for safekeeping. "Please," he begged, jumping off the bed and appearing by her side. "Just talk to me," he pleaded with her. He used his thumb to brush off a tear, and she stiffened noticeably._

_"Draco, last night…it wasn't right. It can't happen. We just have too much history. It won't work out," she told him in broken sentences. And with that, she left the room, trying to ignore the pain throbbing in her chest, and the voice in her head telling her to go back. _

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Dear Draco Malfoy,

Hermione Granger has been announced pregnant and she claims it is your child. She will give birth in approximately two months time. Please sign the attached papers to give consent that you are the father. If further DNA testing is needed to prove that it is indeed your child, feel free to contact me. A week after the baby has been born there will be a hearing at the Ministry of Magic to confirm with both parties the custody arrangements for the child. You will be notified when and where at a closer date.

Best Regards,

Newton Collingwood  
Wizarding Private Attorney

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A/N: Do things make more sense now? If not, just PM me. Oh, and PLEASE REVIEW! (:


	10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: The world of Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling.

A/N: Wow, its been such a long time, I'm so sorry! Been super busy. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter...

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Draco was awfully surprised when he saw a tawny owl drop a letter onto his kitchen counter at noon. He recognized the owl immediately. It was Hermione's owl, and it had always been. She was so happy when she had received the owl as a birthday present in seventh year. He'll never forget her expression when her eyes had first beheld the small bird. It still brought a smile to his lips.

But what surprised him even more was the content of the letter.

_Malfoy,_

_Hermione wants to have lunch with you at the Muggle restaurant right outside Diagon Alley – the one that sells those wonderful bread-sticks. Meet her there at 12:30 today and bring Jamie along – I'll be there to pick him up so you two can talk alone. _

_Yes, Malfoy, this is actually happening. Breathe. _

_And dress nice. _

_Ginny Weasley_

Draco stared at the piece of parchment for a moment, his mind completely flabbergasted. Why did Hermione want to speak to him? Why after all these years would she finally want to see him again? Is it because of the encounter yesterday?

So many questions swarmed around his brain, until it started to hurt like hell.

"Daddy?" Jamie's voice interrupted his thoughts. Draco turned towards his son and saw the boy crouching by his side. "What are you reading?" Draco instinctively covered the letter with his arm, before remembering that his son could not even read yet. Secretive much, Draco?

"Nothing, nothing." He ran his fingers through his hair absent-mindedly. "How would you like to have lunch with Aunt Ginny?" Jamie grinned a 'yes' and told his Dad how cool Aunt Ginny was. They proceeded out the door, with Draco scribbling a quick 'okay' on a piece of parchment, and attaching it to the legs of the owl who was waiting patiently.

"We're not going to Diagon Alley for lunch?" Jamie asked when he saw them turn into a homey Italian restaurant. He wondered why his father was acting so strangely. Strangely jumpy and even more pale than usual. And to be perfectly honest, he was usually quite pale enough. It was as if he was scared to enter the restaurant – which is a ridiculous thought to entertain, because his father seemed like the sort who was scared of nothing.

"I don't know, maybe Ginny will bring you," he muttered his answer, clearly not paying much attention. He started pacing right outside the restaurant. What in Merlin's name was he doing here? What would he say to her? How should he greet her? And to think everyone thought witches over think things!

A redhead appeared by his side.

"Malfoy," she greeted with – confusingly – less coldness than usual. She sounded, almost, neutral – as if they were average acquaintances. Maybe colleagues at work. Not as if he was the ex-boyfriend of her best friend. Who got said best friend knocked up.

"Weaslet," he raised his eyebrows significantly. "Please tell me what the hell I'm doing here," he implored frustratingly.

"Don't swear," Jamie pointed out, growing very worried. He pouted slightly. Why was his father being so weird? He never really swore, or behaved this nervous. Was he having one of those mental breakdowns that mummy always spoke of?

"Sorry buddy," he ruffled the kid's head and stared at Ginny. "Please, just tell me why I'm here." She smiled mischievously, and shook her head. "She just wants to have lunch." After all, isn't that the truth? Who knew what Hermione was thinking?

"You're killing me," Draco uttered, hugging Jamie goodbye, and stalking into the restaurant with his head held high. Like a true Malfoy. After a few seconds though, he slouched more and more and his confidence was withdrawn. This is what Hermione did to him!

"Hi." He stopped mid-walk and spun around. He was walking around the restaurant aimlessly and did not even recognize her. Wow. Hermione looked…different than yesterday. She seemed fresher. And obviously more sober.

"Hi," he said breathlessly, as he watched her rise from her seat. It seemed only natural that they would hug in greeting. Shaking hands would just make things awkward.

"You look good," she smiled when she sat back down. He looked at her. It wasn't that she aged since five years ago, but she seemed wiser, more mature. Her eyes were still the exact same though. It reminded him of whom she had been when with him. Spirited, adventurous – not really who everyone knew Hermione as.

"I try my best," he smirked and they both chuckled at his little joke. What the hell? Why did I just say that? I sound like a pompous git. _You are a pompous git._ The voice in his head told him.

It went quiet.

"You do too," he offered and she smiled in gratitude. When the waiter came they both let out a small sigh of relief and ordered their food.

"So…" Draco rapped his fingers against the table gently, a habit he had never gotten rid of. He saw Hermione's eyes light up knowingly. Damn it. She must have remembered that he only did it when he got really nervous. "How's work treating you?"

She breathed in and blushed slightly, a tinge of red hitting her cheeks. "I just got promoted to Head of the Law Department at the Ministry," she shrugged as though it wasn't that big of an issue.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Draco smiled, glad that all of Hermione's studying over the years had paid off. "I've read some of your cases before," he said without thinking. "I mean", he flushed, "….yeah, I saw them in the Daily Prophet, and…yeah, good job."

Damn it…Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it. Why was this so bloody awkward? He hated awkwardness, it made his insides feel so strange, and Hermione and him never used to have these kinds of situations! Then again, back then, they hadn't gone through all that drama yet either.

"Hermione," he heard a voice call and he turned around to face where the voice had come from. A man appeared by their table; dark hair, tanned skin, shiny robes, and the smile of a man who had seen a lot of good in his life. Draco glanced at Hermione and saw her beaming at this man.

"Hey," she said and stood up to give him a warm hug. Draco felt a twinge of jealousy spark up. She didn't look uncomfortable or awkward at all around this guy. "You know Draco," she motioned towards the now scowling blonde man.

Draco stood up and shook the guy's hand with a firm grip. He noticed that the man had also grown quite stiff and a dark shadow had passed across his face. "Know of," the man had muttered and took a step away from Draco after he got his hand back. What the hell was this guy's problem?

"Yeah," Hermione grinned at Draco, not noticing the tension at all, and placed a hand on the tanned guy's arm – which Draco had definitely noticed. "So," she told Draco, "this is Kyle."

Oh, now that made sense.

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A/N: Please review :)


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